Men's Basketball

Raiders open preseason in Dallas

Oct 10, 2018

DALLAS — Three Rivers men’s basketball traveled to Dallas, Texas, over the weekend for its first preseason action. Dropping all three outings, the Raiders saw areas that need improvement, as well as things to build off of as the regular season approaches. Turnovers and getting stops on defense and free throw shooting were problematic at times for Three Rivers. In each of their three outings, the Raiders finished with double digit turnovers, and in two games they were minus 10 or worse in turnover margin. Against Clarendon, the team committed 19 turnovers, the most in any of its three games. Despite that, the Raiders were able to rally from an 18 point first-half deficit, falling by just six at 75-69. Sophomore guard Tristan Jarrett was a bright spot for the offense inside the arc, going 4-for-7 and finishing with 14 points. Freshman guard Hayden Sprenkel also scored 14 with the help of a solid 4-for-6 shooting from 3-point range. In a low-scoring affair against New Mexico, both teams struggled from the floor. Three Rivers shot just under 32 percent while holding New Mexico to just under 43 percent. New Mexico was able to grind out a 50-42 win over the Raiders. Three Rivers attempted 16 free throws but made just eight. Redshirt freshman Aaron Tait connected on three of his six shots from behind the arc to lead the team with nine points in the defensive struggle. In its final game against Pearl River, Three Rivers struggled shooting the 3, while the opposition was taking and making them in bunches. Pearl River made 12 3-pointers to the tune of 52 percent, while Three Rivers went 7-33 on the way to a 71-48 loss in the jamboree finale. Freshman guard Mandarius Dickerson led the way offensively for Three Rivers with 10 points on 4-of-8 shooting, including a pair of triples and three steals. Three Rivers will play its next set of preseason games Saturday in the Evangel Jamboree in Springfield, Missouri.